Not long after Gov. Charlie Crist appointed him to head the state's Department of Juvenile Justice, Walt McNeil put himself on the record as recognizing what many advocates for troubled youths have long known. DJJ Secretary McNeil said that the state's juvenile-justice system is ''broken'' and needs fixing. Mr. McNeil, a former Tallahassee police chief, has an uphill challenge.

Perennially underfunded

Part of the problem is that the DJJ -- which contracts 85 percent of its programs to private providers -- has been perennially underfunded. Last year the Legislature identified a $100 million deficit in DJJ's budget and allocated an extra $21 million, which upgraded salaries and benefits of providers' direct-care staff. A study found that the turnover rate for these staffers was 55 percent, prompting a crisis for providers. Some of DJJ's requests for proposals have drawn no bidders or have been canceled because of a lack of experienced bidders. The reason is money, or lack thereof. Though the Legislature faces a revenue shortfall this year, it should not forget the remaining $79 million deficit at DJJ. Advocates, acknowledging the shortfall, are asking for $45 million new dollars for next year.

One way you know that DJJ needs fixing is that, even though violent crime overall is down, the state has one of the country's highest rates of trying juveniles in adult court. If DJJ were more effective at turning around troubled youth, fewer of them would be committing new crimes serious enough, or frequently enough, to land them in adult court. So while more money would help DJJ, Mr. McNeil needs to identify the most effective treatment and rehabilitation programs and be sure they are emphasized.

Also, laws passed in reaction to a 1990s crime wave that included several killings of tourists by teenagers toughened up the state's attitude toward juvenile delinquents. It's time to revisit some of those changes.

• Restore judges' authority to decide if a juvenile should be tried as an adult. Right now, state prosecutors make this choice. While most prosecutors act responsibly and judiciously in bringing adult charges against a juvenile, a judge should ultimately decide the youth's fate in court. A judge should also determine a juvenile's competency to stand trial.

• Restore blended sentencing, in which a judge can impose a combination of juvenile and adult sentences for a juvenile who may have gotten in trouble one too many times, but appears salvageable. The adult sentence could be withheld as an incentive for the youth to stick with the juvenile program and straighten up.

The goal is twofold: public safety, of course, but also taking steps to intervene and rehabilitate juvenile offenders before they become career criminals.

Join the discussion

Note: If this is your first time using our NEW commenting system, you will have to LOG OUT and then LOG BACK IN.

The Miami Herald is pleased to provide this opportunity to share information, experiences and observations about what's in the news. Some of the comments may be reprinted elsewhere in the site or in the newspaper. We encourage lively, open debate on the issues of the day, and ask that you refrain from profanity, hate speech, personal comments and remarks that are off point. In order to post comments, you must be a registered user of MiamiHerald.com. Your username will show along with the comments you post. Thank you for taking the time to offer your thoughts.

     Showing: Oldest first Newest first Most-recommended first Least-recommended first

@Nyx.AuthorDisplayName@ wrote on @Nyx.PostedAtTime@:

@Nyx.CommentBody@

@Nyx.Recommender@ @Nyx.AbuseReporter@